Method and apparatus for providing additional information to a selective call device about a broadcast

ABSTRACT

A technique is used for providing additional information about a broadcast presentation that allows a user interested in the additional information to acquire it easily, using a selective call device or a television remote control device to easily acquire an information address during the broadcast when a prompt is presented during the broadcast. An advertiser can send the additional information over a wide area radio selective call communication system or can post it at a universal resource locator of a computer network. The information address is used to acquire the additional information. The information address can be stored, selected and deleted in the selective call device or remote control device. The prompt can be disabled or enabled manually or based on location.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is a divisional of pending U.S. applicationSerial No. 09/630326, filed Jul. 31, 2000, and assigned to Motorola,Inc.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] This invention relates in general to selective call communicationsystems and devices, and broadcast systems, and in particular to amethod and apparatus for providing additional information to a user of aselective call device about a broadcast presented on a broadcastreceiver that is of interest to a user of the selective call device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] Selective call communication devices such as pagers using presentday technology have the capability of receiving information (e.g.,advertisements, news, sports information, and other types ofinformation) besides the traditional personal messages received bypagers. One type of such non-personal message information, describedherein simply as additional information, could be of benefit toadvertisers who advertise using broadcast systems, such as commercialtelevision systems. Advertisers would typically benefit if additionalinformation could be gotten to persons who view presentations ofadvertisements on television sets or receive advertisements on broadcastradio receivers, if the additional information, or a method to obtainthe additional information could be provided immediately, inexpensivelyto the user and advertiser, and without significant effort on the partof the user.

[0004] U.S. Pat. 5,752,186 issued to Malackowski et al. on May 12, 1998,entitled “ACCESS FREE WIRELESS TELEPHONY FULFILLMENT SERVICE SYSTEM”describes methods in which a mobile telephone caller receives additionalinformation relevant to a radio broadcast or other advertisement. In afirst method, the caller perceives an access code, for example, on abillboard or in a radio broadcast. The caller then initiates a telephonecall using an access telephone number (perhaps also transmitted in thebroadcast or listed on the billboard), and by using the access code,obtains additional information relevant to the billboard or broadcast.In a second method, the caller's mobile telephone receives the accesscode from a roadside transmitter or radio broadcast, and automaticallyinitiates a telephone call to receive the information. It will beappreciated that, in the first method, the caller must remember or notedown numbers and use them to obtain the information, making itcomplicated for the caller. In the second method, all such access codesare automatically used to initiate a telephone call, making it expensivefor the caller or the service supplier or the advertiser, or acombination of the three. In both instances, it will be appreciated thata telephone call is initiated by each caller obtaining the information,and that each response is uniquely conveyed to the caller, again makingit expensive for the caller or the service supplier or the advertiser,or a combination of the three. Such an approach can provide additionalinformation to the caller but does not typically achieve all of theobjectives listed above.

[0005] What is needed, then, is a technique that provides additionalinformation to a person who perceives a broadcast presentation ofinterest, and that achieves more of the objectives of being immediate,inexpensive, and simple for the user.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0006]FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a two-way paging system and abroadcast television system, in accordance with the preferred embodimentof the present invention.

[0007]FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of a television set, in accordancewith the preferred embodiment of the present invention

[0008]FIG. 3 is a front view of a television set that is presenting acommercial broadcast, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention.

[0009]FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a receiver of the televisionbroadcast system, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention.

[0010]FIG. 5 is a timing diagram of a prompt presented during thebroadcast and an information address signal transmitted during thebroadcast, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

[0011]FIG. 6 is a timing diagram of the broadcast and prompt presentedby the television broadcast receiver and a message transmitted by afixed network of the selective call communication system, in accordancewith the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0012]FIG. 7 is an electrical block diagram of a subscriber unit, inaccordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0013]FIGS. 8 and 9 are a flow chart of a method used in a broadcastsystem and a selective call communication system to provide additionalinformation about a broadcast presentation, in accordance with thepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0014]FIGS. 10 and 11 are a flow chart of an optional method ofacquiring the information address by the subscriber unit, in accordancewith the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0015]FIG. 12 is a block diagram of a remote control unit used in themethod described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, in accordance withthe preferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0016]FIGS. 13 and 14 are flow charts of a method to control a promptmode of the television set, in accordance with the preferred embodimentof the present invention.

[0017]FIG. 15 is an electrical block diagram of the television set,showing additional functions that make it possible for the televisionset to receive a command signal from the remote control unit describedwith reference to FIG. 12, in accordance with the preferred embodimentof the present invention.

[0018]FIG. 16 is a flow chart is shown of a method to determine a promptmode of the television set by a location, in accordance with thepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

[0019]FIG. 17 is an electrical block diagram of a television set thatdetermines the prompt mode from a location, in accordance with thepreferred embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0020] Referring now to the drawings and in particular to FIG. 1, atwo-way paging system 100 and a television broadcast system 106 areshown, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. The two-way paging system 100 is representative of one andtwo way wide area selective call radio communication systems thatinclude paging systems, cellular radio systems, and mobile radiosystems, and accordingly, the pagers used in the two-way paging systemare representative of one and two way selective call devices such as oneand two way pagers, cellular and personal communication systemtelephones, personal digital assistants having wireless modems, andmobile radios. The two-way paging system 100 is a wide area radioselective call communication system that uses the well known FLEX™signaling, and comprises a fixed network that includes atransmitter/receiver 114 and a plurality of pagers including pagers 110,111, 112,113. A discussion of the FLEX communication protocol forexample can be found in U.S. Pat. 5,555,183 entitled “Method andApparatus for Synchronous Selective Call Signal”, which is herebyincorporated by reference. It will be appreciated that the wide arearadio selective call communication system of which the paging system 100is representative would typically comprise a plurality oftransmitter/receivers 114 and/or separate transmitters and receivers.The plurality of pagers used in the wide area selective callcommunications system 100 includes at least one unique pager such as oneof the pagers 110, 111, 113 and can include one or more conventionalpagers such as pager 112. One of the unique pagers 110 is out of rangeof the television broadcast system 106 in this example. Another of theunique pagers 113 is not near a broadcast receiver such as broadcastreceiver 109. These two unique pagers, 110, 113 cannot make immediateuse of all the functions of the present invention, but they may benefitby previously having been near a broadcast receiver that was in range ofthe broadcast system 106. Because the other unique pager 111 is withinrange of both the two-way paging system 100 and is also within the rangeof a signal produced by a television set 109 of the television broadcastsystem 106, the other unique pager 111 can provide all the advantages ofthe present invention essentially without delays that will typicallyoccur for pagers near television set 108 that are out of range of thetwo-way paging system 100.

[0021] The television broadcast system 106 is representative ofbroadcast systems that include television and radio broadcast and cablesystems. The television broadcast system 106 comprises an infrastructurethat includes a conventional television broadcast transmitter 120 and aplurality of conventional television sets, of which two television sets108, 109 are illustrated in FIG. 1. A broadcast signal 122 is radiatedin an essentially uniform manner within a television coverage boundaryof the television broadcasting system 106, and is intercepted by thetelevision sets 108, 109. In a cable broadcasting system, the broadcastsignal is broadcast by cable to television sets that subscribe to thecable service, in a conventional manner. The broadcast signal 122 is aradio frequency signal that carries a broadcast that comprises an audioportion, a video portion, and in some instances an ancillary portion.The broadcast signal 122 is generated by conventional modulation andamplification circuits of the transmitter/receiver 120, and is thereforereferred to herein as a standard television signal because the broadcastsignal 122 meets national standard for television signals, such as FCCstandards for conventional “NTSC” broadcasts, or the ATSC DigitalTelevision Standard promulgated by the Advanced Television SystemsCommittee in the United States of America, but the national standardswould be different in many other countries. The audio, video, andancillary portions of the broadcast according to the present inventionare conventional in some aspects and unique in other aspects. They areconventional in that the signals comprising each portion are withinstandard parameters defined by the standards for the portions, such asbandwidths specified for the signals, but they are unconventional as tothe information that is included in each signal.

[0022] The television sets 108, 109 comprise one or more televisionreceivers, as illustrated in FIG. 2. In the electrical block diagramshown in FIG. 2, the television set 109 comprises an internal televisionreceiver 250 and a set-top cable box 255 that is also called atelevision receiver for the purposes of this description. Both theinternal television receiver 250 and the set-top cable box 255 arereceivers of television signals that meet a broadcast standard orstandards. One of the receivers 250, 255 is selected by a selector 260that is controlled by a user in a conventional manner. The selectedreceiver 250, 255 converts either a radio frequency (RF) signal 249 thatis intercepted by a TV antenna 245 or a cable (RF) signal 254 that hasbeen generated by a TV cable system operator and conducted to the settop cable box 255 by a cable. The selected receiver converts theintercepted RF signal 249 or the cable RF signal 254 to a TV monitoraudio/video signal 251, 256 that is coupled to a conventional TV monitor265 for presentation to a viewer. When one of the RF signals 249, 254includes an ancillary portion and the associated TV monitor audio/videosignal 251, 256 has been selected by the selector 260, the associatedreceiver 250, 255 extracts information as described in more detail belowfrom it and generates a first short range wireless (SRW) signal 270,described more fully below.

[0023] Referring now to FIG. 3, a front view of the television set 109is shown, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. In this example, the television set 109 is presenting abroadcast that is a TV commercial of 30 seconds duration. During asignificant portion of the duration of the TV commercial (e.g., enoughtime for most viewers to see and react to it, such as 15 seconds), aprompt 220 is shown on the video portion of the broadcast. In thisexample the prompt 220 is located in the lower right hand corner of theTV screen 210. The prompt 220 is a well-known symbol or icon thatindicates to the viewer that of the TV commercial that additionalinformation concerning the subject of the TV commercial is available.The prompt 220 in this example is a well-known trademark, the FLEXsignaling trademark that indicates to the user that the additionalinformation is available by use of a FLEX communication system. Theprompt 220 is preferably shown within the TV commercial beginning at thestart of the commercial, or shortly thereafter, and is retained in thecommercial until the end of the commercial. It will be appreciated thata unique aspect of the prompt 220 is that its symbolism is notnecessarily related to the subject matter of the TV commercial, butrather it is related to the method to use for obtaining more informationrelated to the subject matter of the TV commercial. During the TVcommercial the audio portion of the broadcast is presented to the vieweras sound 230 (also described herein as the audio presentation) emanatingfrom TV loudspeakers. The audio presentation comprises conventionalspeech and/or music, which are chosen to inform the viewer about theproduct being advertised. In accordance with the preferred embodiment ofthe present invention, the first short-range wireless (SRW) signal 270is emitted by the television set 109 substantially simultaneously withthe TV commercial. This first SRW signal 270 is preferably a two wayradio signal that meets the Bluetooth standard (“Specification of theBluetooth System”, version 1.0 draft, Jul. 5, 1999) and includes aninformation address 320 (described below with reference to FIG. 5) inits transmitted signal, but alternatively could be other types of shortrange communications signals, such as an infrared signal that meetsInfraRed Data Association (IrDA) standards such as the IrDA Command andControl Standard, the IrDA Infrared Communications Protocol, and theIrDA Infrared Tiny Transport Protocol, or a sound signal, either audibleor superaudible, that includes the information address 320.

[0024] Referring now to FIG. 4, an electrical block diagram of thereceivers 250, 255 is shown, in accordance with the preferred embodimentof the present invention. One of the RF signals 249, 254 is coupled toan RF signal demodulator 280 of one of receivers 250, 255 that convertsand demodulates the RF signal 249, 254, generating a digital signal. AnMPEG2 decoder 283 then decompresses the original signal. Thedecompressed digital signal is coupled to an audio/video decoder 286that generates one of the audio/video signals 251 (receiver 250), 256(receiver 255) that is coupled in a conventional manner to the TVmonitor 265. The decompressed digital signal is also coupled to anancillary signal decoder 289 that uniquely extracts the informationaddress 320 and couples it to a first SRW signal generator 290, that isshown in FIG. 4 as a Bluetooth transmitter/receiver, which transmits thefirst SRW signal 270. In an implementation in which the first SRW signal270 is an IrDA signal, the first SRW signal generator 290 can be an IrDAtransmitter/receiver. In an implementation in which the first SRW signal270 is a (one way) sound signal, the first SRW signal generator 290 canbe a television speaker.

[0025] Referring to FIG. 5, a timing a diagram of the first SRW signal270 transmitted by the television set 109 during the TV commercial isshown, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. This first SRW signal 270 is an information address signal305 that in this example comprises four bursts of an information address320 that includes a FLEX protocol position identifier, plus redundantbits added for error protection. Each of the FLEX protocol positionidentifiers comprises 48 bits of information, which is sufficient touniquely identify a FLEX protocol position within a one-day period,provide other information, and provide for error correction. Forexample, for the protocol position identifier, five bits are used toidentify the hour, four bits are used to identify the cycle, seven bitsare used to identify the frame, four bits are used to identify theblock, and five bits are used to identify the word at which theadditional information starts. The 13 bits that are not used forprotocol position identifiers are used for error correction anddetection in a conventional manner. The address information and the 13error correction and detection bits are preferably embedded within thestandard Bluetooth protocol.

[0026] The information address signal 305 occurs during the broadcast,which in this example has a duration 330 of 30 seconds. The prompt 220in this example starts 4 seconds after the start of the broadcast, at atime referred to herein as the prompt start time 335, and is presentedfrom the prompt start time 335 to the end of the broadcast. Theinformation address signal 305 starts after the prompt start time 335;in this example starting 12 seconds into the broadcast. This delay afterthe prompt start time 335 allows users to react to the prompt 220 andactivate their pagers 111 prior to the start 340 of the first SRW signal270. It will be appreciated that the number of repetitions of theinformation address 320 and the error protection bits that are used inthe first SRW signal 270 can be changed without changing a fundamentalaspect of the invention, which is to include the information address 320in the first SRW signal 270 in a reliable manner and to transmit thefirst SRW signal 270 at times following the prompt start time 335 thatare judged to optimize a reception by an electronic device activated bya user in response to the prompt; as few as one transmission of theinformation address 320 could be sufficient in certain circumstances.

[0027] Referring again to FIG. 1, the video presentation is viewed by auser of the pager 111, who sees the prompt 220 and has an interest infurther information about the TV commercial being presented. The userpresses a control button on the pager 111 that activates a first SRWsignal 270 receive mode of the pager 111. A Bluetoothtransmitter/receiver (or infrared transmitter/receiver in the case ofIrDA, or microphone, in the case of a sound signal) in the pager 111intercepts and decodes the first SRW signal 270, generating theinformation address 320. The information address is stored in the pager111. In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, the pager 111 then automatically interprets the informationaddress 320 and when the information address is a protocol positionindication, the page 111 decodes a message 510 (see FIG. 6) that istransmitted by the fixed network of the two-way paging system 100beginning at the protocol position indicated by the protocol positionidentifier in the information address 320. Information in the message isaccepted by the pager 111; this is some or all of the additionalinformation associated with the TV commercial whose availability isindicated by the prompt 220. In accordance with the preferred embodimentof the present invention, the information address 320 can alternativelybe a uniform resource locator (URL) that is used by the pager 111 toobtain the additional information either automatically or at a commandof the user of the pager

[0028] Referring to FIG. 6, a timing diagram of the broadcast and themessage 510 is shown, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention when the information address is a protocol positionindicator. The duration 330 of the broadcast and the prompt start time335 are shown on the lower axis of FIG. 6. The message 510, shown on theupper axis of FIG. 6, starts at a message start time 520. It will beappreciated that the message 510 must start after the prompt start time335 for the message 510 to be effective. The transmission schedules forthe message 510 and the prompt 220 are preferably arranged such that themessage start time 520 follows the end of the last complete burst 320 ofthe information address signal 305. This allows the message 510 to besent once and received by the pager 111 even in the event the user waitsuntil near the end of the broadcast to activate the information addressreceive mode, when the information address is a protocol positionindicator. For some types of broadcasts, the advertiser or other partymay provide the additional information a single time. For other types ofbroadcasts, the advertiser or other party schedules a follow on message530, or a plurality of such messages 530, that are sent periodically orat times indicated by the protocol position indicator. As an example,availability of tickets for a concert can be updated every 6 or 12 hoursuntil the time of the concert. In this case, the information address 320may be longer, in order to include in the protocol position identifier aprotocol position for the message start time 520 as well as a period(e.g., number of FLEX™ frames) at which the message 530 will berepeated, or a plurality of protocol positions.

[0029] As described above, the additional information can alternativelybe stored by the advertiser at a location in a computer networkidentified by a uniform resource locator (URL). In this case theinformation can be retrieved immediately or any later time until theadvertiser removes it.

[0030] It will be appreciated that the audio and video portions of thebroadcast are generated by or for an advertiser or other party usingvideo and audio mixing techniques conventionally used by commercialtelevision program producers, resulting in an electronic recording ofthe broadcast that is scheduled for transmission at a predetermined timewith the broadcaster by the advertiser or other party. The advertiser orother party has a choice of to methods of delivering the additionalinformation. In one, the advertiser or other party also schedules withan operator of the two-way paging system 100 for transmission of themessage 510 at a time relative to the scheduled transmission time of theprompt that allows the user to acquire the additional informationquickly and easily, as described above with reference to FIG. 6, andallows the advertiser or other party to minimize the costs of gettingthe additional information only to interested users, by avoidingunnecessary repeated transmissions of the additional information. In theother, the advertiser or other party places the additional informationat a location in a computer network accessible by a URL.

[0031] Referring to FIG. 7, an electrical block diagram of amultichannel subscriber unit 600 is shown, in accordance with thepreferred embodiment of the present invention. The subscriber unit 600is representative of one or two-way pagers 110, 111, 113. The subscriberunit 600 comprises a transmitter/receiver (transceiver) 615 and acontroller 650. A conventional antenna 610 intercepts radiated radiofrequency (RF) signals 605 that are converted by the antenna 610 toconducted RF signals that are coupled to the receiver 615. Thetransceiver 615 performs conventional receiving functions of filteringunwanted energy from the RF signal, converting the RF signal, andgenerating a demodulated signal 620 that is coupled to the controller650, using a conventional phase lock loop 616 to generate a localoscillator signal. The transceiver 615 also performs conventionaltransmitting functions of modulating and RF amplifying a signal emittedby the antenna 610. The controller 650 generates an input control 617that is coupled to the phase lock loop 616. The controller 650 is alsocoupled to a display 624, an alert 630, a set of user controls 640, anshort range wireless (SRW) signal receiver/transmitter 645, and anelectrically erasable read only memory (EEPROM) 626. The controller 650comprises a microprocessor 660, as well as other circuits not shown inFIG. 7, such as power regulation circuits. The controller 650 is alsocoupled to the receiver 615 by a power control signal 618 that switchesthe receiver off during certain frames when the controller 650 has thetransceiver 615 tuned to a home channel. This is for conventionalbattery savings purposes. The SRW signal receiver/transmitter 645receives, demodulates, and decodes first SRW signals 270, and encodes,modulates, and transmits other SRW signals needed for protocolacknowledgments, for example. The SRW receiver/transmitter 645 iscontrolled by the controller 650 to communicate using the standardBluetooth protocol, and receives the information address signal 305,which is processed by the controller 650. In the case of an IrDA firstSRW signal 270, the SRW receiver/transmitter 645 is an infraredreceiver, and in the case of a sound SRW signal, the SRWreceiver/transmitter 645 is a microphone (i.e., there is notransmitter). The microprocessor 660 is coupled to the EEPROM 626 forstoring an embedded address, the information address 320, and otherconfiguration information that is stored therein during normal ormaintenance operations. The microprocessor 660 is a digital signalprocessor of conventional circuit design, comprising a centralprocessing unit (CPU) 661, a read only memory (ROM) 662, and a randomaccess memory (RAM) 663. In certain embodiments, the transceiver 615need be only a receiver.

[0032] A conventional message processor function of the microprocessor660 decodes an outbound selective call message, generating data wordsthat have been coded within an outbound signaling protocol conveyed bythe radio signal 605, and processes an outbound personal selective callmessage when an address received in an address field of the outboundsignaling protocol matches the embedded address stored in the EEPROM626, in a manner well known to one of ordinary skill in the art for asubscriber unit. An outbound personal selective call message that hasbeen determined to be for the subscriber unit 600 by the addressmatching is processed by the message processor function according to thecontents of the outbound message and according to modes set bymanipulation of the set of user controls 640, in a conventional manner.An alert signal is typically generated when an outbound personalselective call message includes user information. The alert signal iscoupled to the alert device 630, which is typically either aconventional audible or a silent alerting device. When the pager 111 isa two-way pager (or, for example, a cellular radio), acknowledgment andother inbound signals are transmitted by the transceiver 615.

[0033] The subscriber unit 600 is preferably a conventional modelPagewriter™ 2000 pager made by Motorola, Inc. of Schaumburg, Ill.,except that firmware in the ROM 662 is modified to have unique segmentsof firmware comprising unique combinations of conventional programminginstructions that control the CPU 661, and therefore the controller 650and the subscriber unit 600, to perform the unique message receivingoperations described herein, in particular with reference to FIGS. 1-6,and also in FIGS. 8-17. It will be appreciated that, in accordance withthe preferred embodiment of the present invention, the subscriber unit600 can simultaneously receive the first SRW signal 270 and a message510 or a personal selective call message, because the subscriber unit600 has a separate receiver for each signal and the controller operatesfast enough to demodulate the first SRW signal 270 and decode theinformation address320 while decoding a personal selective call messageor the message 510. The subscriber unit 600 can alternatively be amodified version of one of many different conventional models ofselective call radios that are designed to operate on a FLEX™ or ReFLEX™communication system. In the subscriber unit 600, the information signalreceiver 645 is a preferably a Bluetooth transmitter/receiver. For thoseselective call radios that are controlled by a CPU, their programminginstructions must be modified to provide the unique functions describedherein. For others that are state machines, which share thecharacteristics of the subscriber unit 600 of having a receiver and acontroller, the logic of their controller must be modified to providethe unique functions described herein. The techniques for making suchmodifications are well known to one of ordinary skill in the art. Thedescription “subscriber unit” is a convenient name for a selective callradio and is not intended to restrict the subscriber unit 600 only toradios for which the service is user paid. For example, the radio mayone of many radios owned by a business that operates an entirecommunication system. It will be appreciated that the unique selectivecall paging radios 110, 111, 113 can alternatively be two-way subscriberunits such as cellular radios, although some features of the presentinvention may not be practical in some communication systems, such asthe use of the protocol position indicator type of information address.

[0034] In an embodiment in which the first SRW signal 270 is an infraredsignal command, the SRW receiver/transmitter 645 can alternatively be areceiver only, and in an embodiment in which the first SRW signal 270 iscarried by sound, the receiver/transmitter 645 is a receiver only.Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 9, a flow chart of a technique used in thesubscriber unit 600 to perform the retrieval of additional informationrelated to a broadcast is shown, in accordance with the preferredembodiment of the present invention. The technique is described in termsof more general communication systems than the television broadcastsystem 106 and two-way paging system 100, since the invention is usablein other system combinations (e.g., an frequency modulation (FM) digitalradio broadcast system and a personal communication system). At step705, in an infrastructure of a broadcast system, a transmitter transmitsa broadcast that includes a prompt and the information address 320. Theprompt in a radio broadcast system is preferably a well-known phrase ofmusic or a sequence of well-known audible tones such as the tones thatNBC uses. In this instance the prompts are occasionally repeated induring the broadcast instead of being presented continuously. At step710, a broadcast receiver of the broadcast system receives the promptand the information address 320. The prompt indicates that additionalinformation is available. The information address 320 identifies how theadditional information can be received. At step 715 the broadcastreceiver presents the broadcast including the prompt.

[0035] At step 720 the broadcast receiver transmits a first SRW signal270 that includes the information address 320. In accordance with thepreferred embodiment of the present invention, the first SRW signal 270is a signal that meets the Bluetooth standards. In alternativeembodiments of the present invention, the information address signal 305is transmitted using an infrared carrier or an alternative local radiofrequency carrier. In these alternative embodiments, conventionaltechniques are used to modulate the infrared carrier or alternativelocal radio frequency carrier with the data of the information address320, and a conventional device sensor of appropriate type, plusconventional conditioning circuitry, is used for the information signalreceiver 645 of the subscriber unit 600.

[0036] At step 725, when a user of the selective call device who iswatching or listening to a presentation of the broadcast that includesthe prompt, and the user understands that the prompt indicates thatadditional information about the broadcast is available, and when theuser has an interest in such additional affirmation, then the user atstep 730 activates an SRW signal 270 receive mode (SRWSRM) of hisselective call device by manipulating user controls (such as the usercontrols 640 of the subscriber device described with reference to FIG.7) of the selective call device in response, at least in part, to theprompt. If the user has no such interest in the additional informationthen at step 735 the user does not activate the SRWSRM. At step 740,when the user has activated the SRWSRM, then at step 750 the selectivecall device receives, decodes, and stores the information address 320 byreceiving and decoding the message in the manner as described above withreference to FIG. 7 and storing the information address in the EEPROM626, after which the selective call device deactivates the SRWSRM atstep 755. Otherwise, the selective call device does not receive themessage, as for example by remaining in a low power mode during themessage, and the method ends at step 745. The information address 320includes at either a protocol position indication or a URL, andoptionally includes an information access code. In an alternativeembodiment of the present invention, the user decision at step 735 isreplaced by an automatic determination by a prompt sensor of thepresence of a prompt. As an example, a pager having a microphone sensorfor receiving the information address signal 305 can decode themicrophone output to sense a tone sequence used as a prompt in a radiobroadcast, as well as the information address signal 305. This is anexample in which the prompt could be discernable by both a human userand the prompt sensor. In another example, the prompt could be aninfrared signal, as is the information address signal 305, and a commoninfrared sensor is used for detecting both. The sensing of the prompt bythe prompt sensor is activated or deactivated by the user, so theinformation address signal receive mode is activated, at least in part,in response to the prompt. In this alternative embodiment, the pager 111preferably temporarily stores only the most recently receivedinformation address 320 unless the user commands the pager 111 to morepermanently store a currently most recently received information address320 in the EEPROM 626, for future use.

[0037] When the information address includes a protocol positionindicator, then at step 805 a transmitter in the fixed network of thewide area radio selective call communication system transmits a messageat one or more scheduled message start times, identified by a protocolposition, that is after the prompt start time. The broadcast and messageare typically prepared by an advertiser or other party, who schedulesthe broadcast with the operator of the broadcast system so that theprompt will start at a scheduled prompt time. The advertiser or otherparty also schedules with the operator of the wide area radio selectivecall communication system the transmission of the message such that themessage start time is not before the prompt start time, and preferably,such that the message start time follows the end of the informationaddress signal 305. It will be appreciated that these scheduled timesmust typically be able to be achieved within an accuracy of severalseconds or less, but that in modern-day systems such as synchronousselective call communication systems, cellular radio systems, andtelevision or radio broadcast systems, such accuracy is typicallyachievable. When the information address includes a protocol positionindicator, then at step 810 the selective call device adjusts itsreceiver channel as necessary and powers itself on beginning at theprotocol position indicated by the information address 320 that has beenreceived and stored at step 750, and thereby receives the message,including information that is expected to be the additional information.In a FLEX™ selective call communication system, the protocol positioncan be either a start of a frame, wherein, for example, a global messageis included, or the protocol position can be an specific frame, block,and word. In a multichannel communication system, the protocol positioncan also include a receive channel to which the selective call devicemust adjust itself when it is not already adjusted to the channel.

[0038] When the information address includes a URL, then at step 806,the selective call device transmits a message in the wide area selectivecall communication system that includes the URL. The selective callcommunication system, using conventional techniques for retrievinginformation from a computer network using a URL, retrieves theadditional information 320 and transmits it in a message to theselective call device, which receives it at step 811.

[0039] With either type of information address, the selective calldevice decodes the additional information from the message at step 815.

[0040] In accordance with an alternative embodiment described above withreference to step 750, wherein the information address 320 includes theoptional information access code, the selective call device at step 820decodes the information access code. Also in accordance with thisalternative embodiment, when the decoded information access code matchesthe stored information access code at step 825, then the selective calldevice at step 830 accepts the received information as at least a firstportion of the additional information. On the other hand, when thedecoded information access code does not match the stored informationaccess code, then the selective call device does not accept theinformation address at step 835. When the optional information accesscode is not used to control an acceptance of the information address,the information decoded at step 815 is accepted at step 830 when it issufficiently error free (shown by the dotted line in FIG. 9), inaccordance with the standard rules used for decoding messages in theprotocol of the selective call communication system. Many advertiserswould not wish to restrict the class of users that receive theadditional information, but some advertisers and other parties wouldrestrict the class of users that receive the additional information byuse of the information access code. The information address 320 ispreferably retained in storage in the subscriber unit 600. The user isgiven a conventional manual means to review, delete, and select anyinformation address 320 stored in the EEPROM 626 using the user controls640 and the display 624 of the selective call device. Thus, the user canstore a list of such information addresses 320 to collect additionalinformation relevant to several different broadcasts over a period oftime, when the messages are transmitted periodically, even though theuser (and selective call device) are not near a broadcast receiver.Furthermore, the selective call device is responsive to a command fromthe selective call communication system for deleting a specificinformation address 320.

[0041] Referring now to FIGS. 10 and 11, a flow chart of an optionalmethod of acquiring the information address 320 by the subscriber unit600 is shown, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. Steps 1005, 1010, 1015, 1020, 1025, and 1035 are identical tosteps 705, 710, 715, 720, 725, and 735 described above with reference toFIG. 8. Steps 1030, 1040, 1045, 1050, and 1055 provide the samefunctions as steps 730, 740, 745, 750, and 755, but steps 1030, 1040,1045, 1050, and 1055 are performed in a remote control unit (RCU) 1200(FIG. 12) that is similar to a conventionally available remote controlunit. At step 1105, the user enters a command for the subscriber unit600 to acquire the additional information from the remote control unit1200, which process the subscriber unit 600 starts by requesting theinformation address 320 from the remote control unit 1200. In response,the subscriber unit 600 communicates with the remote control unit 1200at step 1110, using a second SRW signal that is generated according tothe Bluetooth standard or another short range wireless protocol, and theinformation address 320 is acquired by the subscriber unit 600 at step1115, using the Bluetooth standard or another short range wirelessprotocol. Then, the subscriber unit 600 acquires the additionalinformation as described above with reference to FIG. 9, steps 805-840.Alternatively, the information address can be transferred from theremote control unit 1200 to other devices, such as a personal computeror a personal assistant equipped with Bluetooth communicating ability,which can then be used to acquire the additional information when theinformation address is a URL. In this instance, the remote controldevice 1200 includes user commands to review, delete, and selectinformation addresses stored therein using the user input/output 1255 ofthe remote control device 1200.

[0042] Referring now to FIG. 12, a block diagram of the remote controlunit 1200 is shown, in accordance with a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention. The remote control unit 1200 preferably comprises acontroller 1230, a first receiver/transmitter 1205, a firstreceptor/emitter 1210, and a user input 1255. The controller 1230comprises a central processing unit 1250 and a memory section 1260 thatare implemented using conventional hardware, but in which the memorysection 1260 is programmed with a unique set of processing instructionsthat control the central processing unit (or more simply, the processor)to perform unique functions as described herein. The remote control unit1200 can optionally comprise a second receiver/transmitter 1215 and asecond receptor/emitter 1220. The remote control unit 1200 is similar toconventional remote control units in that it includes the user input1255, the controller 1230, and the transmitter portion of thereceiver/transmitter 1205, and it can be used to control the normalfunctions of one of the television sets 108, 109, which will be presumedto be television set 109 for the sake of this description. The remotecontrol unit 1200 preferably controls the television set 109 using areceiver/transmitter 1205 implemented using the Bluetooth technology,and the receptor/emitter 1210 is therefore analyzed as a radio antenna.In addition to controlling the conventional functions of the televisionset 109, when the remote control unit 1200 is given inputs from a userby means of the user input/output 1255 that put it into the SRWSRM whilea first SRW signal 270 is transmitted by the television set 109, theremote control unit 1200 receives a first SRW signal 270 from thetelevision set 109, decodes the information address 320 from it, andstores the information signal 320 in the memory 1260. (In an alternativeembodiment, the remote control unit 1200 can be commanded to all SRWsignals 270 and temporarily store only the most recently receivedinformation address 320, unless the user commands the pager 111 to morepermanently store a currently most recently received information address320 in the EEPROM 626, for future use.) Then, later, the user cancontrol his subscriber unit 600 to communicate with the remote controlunit 1200 using the second SRW signal, also preferably using theBluetooth protocol, to request a transfer of the information address 320to the subscriber unit 600 using the second SRW signal, for later use toacquire the additional information about the broadcast. In anotherembodiment of the present invention, the first SRW signal 270 is a soundsignal, the receptor/emitter 1210 is a microphone, and the firstreceiver/transmitter 1205 is an audio receiver. In this embodiment, theremote control unit 1200 can also comprise an infrared transmitter andemitter (not shown in FIG. 12) that emits conventional one-way infraredcommands for controlling television sets. In yet another embodiment ofthe present invention, the first SRW signal 270 is an IrDA signal, thereceptor/emitter 1210 is an infrared sensor and emitter, and the firstreceiver/transmitter 1205 is an IrDA receiver/transmitter. The secondreceiver/ transmitter 1215 is included when a protocol for transfer ofthe information address 320 to the subscriber unit 600 may be differentthan that used for the first SRW signal 270. It will be appreciated thatthe controller 1230 of the remote control unit 1200 can alternativelycomprise a state machine instead of the central processing unit 1250 andthe memory section 1260.

[0043] Referring now to FIGS. 13 and 14, flow charts are shown of amethod to control a prompt mode of the television set 109, in accordancewith the preferred embodiment of the present invention. At step 1305,the remote control unit 1200 transmits a command, preferably in the formof a signal generated by the receiver/transmitter 1205, implemented as aBluetooth receiver/transmitter. When the command is received by thetelevision set 109, the television set 109 determines whether thecommand is a PROMPT ON, PROMPT OFF, or OTHER command at step 1310. Whenthe command is a PROMPT ON or PROMPT OFF command, the television set 109sets the prompt mode to the corresponding state at one of the steps1320, 1330 (if it is not already so set). When it is another type ofcommand, the television set 109 executes the other type of command atstep 1315. After steps 1315, 1320, and 1330, the television set 109awaits another user command at step 1305. At step 1325 (FIG. 14) abroadcast is received with a prompt that indicates that additionalinformation is available concerning the broadcast, and the informationaddress is also received, as described herein above. When the promptmode is ON at step 1340, the prompt is presented on the televisionmonitor, essentially “on top of” a portion of the broadcast video atstep 1345, and the first SRW signal 270 is transmitted shortly after thestart of the presentation of the prompt at step 1350. After steps 1345and 1350, the television set 109 awaits another broadcast withadditional information at step 1325.

[0044] Referring now to FIG. 15, an electrical block diagram of atelevision set 1505 that receives a command signal from the remotecontrol unit 1200 is shown, in accordance with the preferred embodimentof the present invention. The television set 1505 is identical to thetelevision sets 108, 109 described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 4, butwith additional functions as shown in FIG. 15 that make it possible forthe television set 1505 to receive the command signal and act upon it.The intercepted RF signal 249 or the cable RF signal 254 is demodulatedby the RF signal demodulator 280 and decompressed by the MPEG decoder283. The decompressed signal is coupled to an ancillary signal decoder1510 and an audio/video decoder 1540. A prompt gate 1520 and aninformation address gate 1530 are coupled to a prompt mode function 1535that stores the current state of the prompt mode, in response to asignal generated by the Bluetooth transmitter/receiver 290 in responseto the most recently received prompt mode command from the remotecontrol unit 1200. The prompt gate 1520 gates a prompt presentationsignal 1521 that is coupled from the ancillary signal decoder 1510 andthat is either coupled or not coupled to the audio/video decoder 1540,depending on the state of the prompt mode. In accordance with thepreferred embodiment of the present invention, the ancillary signaldecoder 1510 decodes and uses a prompt image (icon) from thedecompressed signal generated by the MPEG decoder 283. In accordancewith an alternative embodiment of the present invention, the ancillarysignal decoder 1510 uses a prompt image (icon) that is stored in memoryrather than one received in the signal 249, 254. The information addressgate 1530 either couples a received information address to the Bluetoothtransmitter/receiver 290 for transmission to the remote control device1200 or to the subscriber unit 600 (depending on the particularembodiment), or does not couple the received information address to theBluetooth transmitter/receiver 290, depending on the particularembodiment of the present invention. In summary, the prompt is eitherpresented or not, and the information address is either transmitted ornot, depending on the state of the prompt mode. In an alternativeembodiment of the present invention, the prompt mode function 1535stores the current state of the prompt mode, which is set in response toa signal generated by the Bluetooth transmitter/receiver 290 in responseto the most recently received prompt mode command from the selectivecall device 600. The selective call device 600 sends a prompt modecommand when the selective call device 600 determines a change of stateof an advisory that is included in a global information portion of theprotocol of the selective call communication system. The advisorycomprises one or more bits of information that indicate whether theselective call communication system is capable of transmitting theadditional information.

[0045] Referring now to FIG. 16, a flow chart is shown of an alternativemethod to control a prompt mode of the television set 109, in accordancewith the preferred embodiment of the present invention. At step 1605 thetelevision set 109 receives and stores a location signal. This ispreferably a geographic location received by a GPS (global positioningsystem) receiver, but can alternatively be a local channelidentification of a local television broadcaster. The use of GPS isparticularly useful when the television set is a mobile or portabletelevision set. The television set 109 determines, at step 1615, whetherthe additional information is available at a location indicated by thestored location. This is done by using an algorithm and table that, inthe instance of the GPS embodiment, indicates which geographic locationsare within coverage of the selective call communication systemaccessible by the information address. In the instance of the localchannel identification, the table is a table listing the identificationof those local broadcasters for which their local broadcast coverage iswell correlated with coverage by the selective call communication systemthat is accessible by the information address. When it is determinedthat additional information is not likely to be available, the state ofthe prompt mode is set to OFF at step 1620. When it is determined thatadditional information is likely to be available, the state of theprompt mode is set to ON at step 1625. After steps 1620, 1625, thetelevision set 109 awaits new location information at step 1605. In thepreferred embodiment, the television set uses the method described withreference to FIG. 14 in response to the state of the prompt mode of thetelevision set 109 to present or not present the prompt and transmit ornot transmit the information address. It will be appreciated that themethods of using geographic location can be used in conjunction with themanual methods of enabling and disabling the prompt command describedwith reference to FIGS. 13 and 14.

[0046] Referring now to FIG. 17, an electrical block diagram of atelevision set 1705 that determines the prompt mode from a location isshown, in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention as described with reference to FIG. 16. The television set1705 is identical to the television set 1505 described with reference toFIG. 15, but with modifications shown in FIG. 17. Television set 1705differs from television set 1505 in that the prompt mode function 1535is controlled not in response to a signal from the Bluetoothtransmitter/receiver 290, but in response to a signal from a locationdeterminer 1730. In accordance with the option shown in FIG. 17, thelocation determiner 1730 receives geographic location information from aconventional GPS receiver 1720 that receives, demodulates, and decodesan RF signal intercepted by antenna 1710. The location determiner 1730compares the geographic location to stored locations that are within thecoverage area of a selective call communication system that isaccessible using the information address. It will be appreciated thatthe GPS receiver 1720 and associated antenna 1710 could alternatively belocated external to the television set 109.

[0047] In the alternative embodiment described above with reference toFIG. 16, instead of using the GPS location, the location determiner 1730makes the location determination using local broadcaster identificationinformation decoded by the ancillary signal decoder 1510, as shown bythe dotted line in FIG. 17, in conjunction with a table of “good”broadcaster identifications.

[0048] By now, it should be appreciated that a method and apparatus hasbeen described for providing additional information about a televisionbroadcast that allows a user interested in the additional information toacquire it easily, using a selective call device or a television remotecontrol device to easily acquire an information address during thebroadcast, when a prompt is presented during the broadcast. Anadvertiser can send the additional information over the selective callcommunication system or can post it at a URL of a computer network. Theinformation address is then used to acquire the additional information.The information address can be stored, selected and deleted in theremote control device or selective call device. The prompt can bedisabled or enabled manually or based on location.

[0049] While several embodiments of the invention has been illustratedand described, it will be clear that changes, variations, substitutionsand equivalents will occur to those skilled in the art without departingfrom the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by theappended claims.

We claim:
 1. A selective call device, comprising: an SRW receiver thatreceives a first short range wireless (SRW) signal from a television setthat includes an information address that identifies how additionalinformation about the contents of a televsion broadcast can be obtained,wherein the television broadcast comprises a prompt indicating that theadditional information is available; a selective call receiver thatreceives messages from a wide area radio selective call communcationsystem; and a controller that is coupled to the SRW and selective callreceivers that decodes the first SRW signal, stores the informationaddress, and uses the information address to obtain the additionalinformation in a message transmitted by the selective call communicationsystem.
 2. The selective call device according to claim 1, wherein theadditional information is transmitted by the selective callcommunication system at a protocol position and the information addressincludes the protocol position that is used to receive the additionalinfomartion.
 3. The selective call device according to claim 1, whereinthe information address includes a URL that is transmitted by theselective call device and used by the selective call communicationsystem to obtain the additional information from a computer network. 4.The selective call device according to claim 1, wherein the controllerstores a plurality of information addresses and provide means for theirselection and deletion.
 5. The selective call device according to claim4, wherein the selective call device is responsive to a message from theselective call communication system to delete a stored informationaddress.
 6. The selective call device according to claim 1, furthercomprising an SRW transmitter coupled to the controller, wherein thecontroller generates a message that is transmitted by the SRWtransmitter in a second SRW signal that commands the television set toenable or disable a presentation of the prompt.
 7. The selective calldevice according to claim 6, wherein the selective call device sends thecommand to enable or disable a presentation of the prompt in response toreceiving an advisory that is included in a global information portionof the selective call communication system.
 8. The selective call deviceaccording to claim 6, further comprising a user input function coupledto the controller, wherein the selective call device sends the commandto enable or disable a presentation of the prompt in response to a userinput to the user input function.